Bombers soccer notches another shutout win

September 12, 2013

LAKE PLACID - So far, the Lake Placid boys soccer team is unbeaten and unscored against in two regular season games.

On Wednesday, the Blue Bombers won their second match by a 2-0 score, blanking Seton Catholic in Division II soccer action on their home pitch at the North Elba Show Grounds.

Freshman Stuart Baird scored in the first half and senior Andrew Meister netted a second-half tally as Lake Placid took down a Class C rival and improved to 3-1 overall.

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Lake Placid’s Stuart Baird, left, and James Mulligan of Seton Catholic race after the ball during Wednesday’s soccer match on the Blue Bombers’ field. Baird, a freshman, netted the first goal to help his team record its second straight 2-0 victory.(Enterprise photo — Lou Reuter)

"When you don't concede any goals, you are not going to lose a soccer game," Lake Placid coach Stuart Hemsley said. "We're concentrating on the defensive end of things, and right now, we playing really good defense.

"When we have seven or eight guys firing on all cylinders, we can compete with anybody," Hemsley added. "Today, all 11 guys came out firing on all cylinders and they never let up."

The Knights, who have a host of talented seniors but not much depth, pressured the Blue Bombers in the early going and generated some solid scoring chances but came up empty.

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Baird notched his goal with less than two minutes remaining in the opening half, driving in from the left wing and firing a low shot past Seton Catholic keeper Keagen Briggs into the far side of the net. Pat Kane picked up an assist on the play.

Meister scored with less than three minutes gone in the second half on a play that started when Nzoni Thompson chipped a cross into the box from the corner of the field. Meister was charging toward the net and one-timed a low shot that went under a diving Briggs.

The Knights nearly broke up the shutout bid of Lake Placid goalie Chris Kordziel with less than two minutes left in the game when Adam Tedford ripped a high shot off the crossbar that bounced away from danger.

"We have some pretty good soccer players, but we don't have depth," Seton Catholic coach Mike Eppler said. "We've had trouble finishing off plays. Right now, we have some guys who are hobbled by injuries, and we tend to peter out near the end of the first half and at the end of the game. We have to make up for that with heart, hustle and the will to work hard."

The loss was the first of the season for the Knights, who fell to 3-1-1 overall.

Lake Placid held a slim 14-13 edge in shots in what was a pretty evenly played match. Kordziel made 13 saves, including a diving stop early in the game, to earn the shutout. Briggs, one of the Knights' captains, stopped 11 shots in a losing effort.